The Rockford Health System Family is greatly saddened by the passing of a great man and a great physician, Dr. James Breckenridge, who died Sunday, August 18, 2013. A beloved and outstanding anesthesiologist, Dr. Breckenridge served as chair of the department that includes approximately 20 physicians. Additionally, “Breck” served as a member of the Rockford Health System Board of Directors since 1998 and as chair in 2007 and 2008. We will miss his laughter, his compassion for others, his vision, his leadership and his friendship. We send our thoughts and prayers to his wife Jennifer and their family.

Many of us seek to pay tribute to Dr. Breckenridge and his legacy. Among those honoring Dr. Breckenridge are fellow anesthesiologists and their spouses, Dr. Alan and LeAnn Mowbray and Dr. Fred and Mary Gahl. The couples have made lead gifts to the Rockford Memorial Development Foundation to establish an endowment in memory of their colleague and friend Dr. Jim Breckenridge. It is fitting that The Dr. James W. Breckenridge Endowment for Anesthesia and Surgerywill provide ongoing support for the surgery department, its physicians and staff, and the patients who receive such outstanding surgical care at Rockford Memorial Hospital.

In making their lead gifts, Drs. Mowbray and Gahl encouraged others to make similar gifts to the endowed fund named for Dr. Breckenridge. Dr. Mowbray commented, “Jim was a great friend, a wonderful mentor and an outstanding leader of Rockford Health System from both clinical and administrative standpoints. He will be sorely missed.”